Submissions

2015 Winners

Grand Jury Award AwakenDirected By Mark Atkins A random group of people wake up on an Island where they are being hunted down in a sinister plot to harvest their organs.

Special Jury AwardButterfliesDirected By Cayman GrantInspired by true events, Butterflies is a teenage story about a cancer survivor who learns to live life to the fullest with a new friend who faces his own battle with Leukemia.

Special Jury AwardIf The Trees Could TalkDirected By Michael WeinsteinA young Jewish girl and her family escape the ghetto and seek refuge in the forest.

Best Feature Film7 Lucky GodsDirected By Jamil DehlaviAn illegal immigrant from Albania infiltrates the lives of a group of Londoners with disastrous consequences.

Best Documentary FeaturePoetry is an Island, Derek WalcottDirected By Ida DoesDerek Walcott, Literature Nobel Laureate has traveled the world while remaining closely connected to his beloved island St. Lucia.

Best Short FilmA Convenient ManDirected By Charles WillisA Governor makes right a past mistake.

Best Documentary ShortFlavor & FuelDirected By Rodrigo DeMedeiros A tale about two wildly different companies. One blending science with art in the pursuit of thrilling fans in the high-tech world of Formula One racing.

Best Foreign FilmKeeper of the PastDirected By Marco J. RiedlFarmer Finn van Hagen begins a New Life and moves with his wife and his two children out to the country. He now lives on an old, idyllic farm in the middle of nowhere to his eyes, in a Perfect World.

Best of DirectorBattalionDirected By Dmitry MeshievFebruary 1917 revolution has affected mode of life in Russia and changed the course of Great War.

Best First-time DirectorThe Telling TideDirected By Darcy WilkinsThe Telling Tide is a film about the Louisiana Sea Grant Coastal Change Oral Histories Project.

Best ScreenplayRight Person Wrong TimeDirected By Christina July Kim Sometimes it takes meeting the right person to want to grow up.

Best Student FilmThe Hum Directed By Fred RabbathThis mysterious hum doesn’t just drone out the world – it rises and falls like an unpredictable, nerve-killing boogeyman.

Best Hawaii FilmHamadryadDirected By Nancy Allison & Paul AllmanA dancer, or perhaps a wood nymph, rehearses alone in a New York studio enchanting herself into the forest that inspired her dance.

Best Family Film Poison AppleDirected By Dane NevesThe story of Snow White told through the point-of-view of the infamous poison apple.

Best Animation ShortI need My MonsterDirected By Howard CookWhen Ethan checks under the bed for his monster, he finds a note instead: “Gone fishing. Back in a week. Gabe” What will Ethan do?

Best Action Sports FilmSolidreamDirected By Brian Mathé, Morgan Monchaud, Siphay VeraChildhood friends decide to pursue their dream to go around the world and cycle 54,000 km, full of unusual challenges.

Best Music VideoRisePerformed By Ali F. MostafaA Reflection on Modern Arabia and the relationship between business and art.

Best Environmental FilmHawaii, Aerial CinematographyDirected By Jake SouthwardAerial views flown with a drone over Hawaii.

Best Thriller FilmCapsizedDirected By Brandon M FreerUsing only a cell phone, a young bride-to-be must find a way to save her fiancé from drowning in a cargo hold of a capsized cruise ship.

Best Television PilotLand of Kings Directed By Wayne Wilson & Bhavani LeeMoving to NY is an incredibly motivating yet daunting experience. Land of Kings follows Jonathan Patterson, a 30 year old, over-educated, unemployed writer new to both New York City and the day to day struggles of making it his home.

2015 Gold Kahuna Winners

Feature Film Competition A Ghost and the Boy [with a Box on his Head] directed by Philip BlueFrom Seoul To Jakarta directed by Damien DematraLa Scultura directed by Mauro John CapecePainted Dreams (2) directed by Michael Krozer101 Secrets directed by Tophy ChoChasing Rainbows directed by Robert Fritz

Short Film Competition The Story of M directed by Anna ArlanovaJourney to Abaddon directed by Sheila HartFlowers directed by Sabina SattarExtreme Pinocchio directed by Pascal ChindPrincess and Grace directed by Tyler WirtanenTime and Again directed by David Turner

Student Film Competition The Emotional Dimensions of the James River directed by Michelle MarquezNesting Grounds directed by Ian Scott McCulloughAloha Hohe directed by Kevin TemmerZugzwang directed by Yolanda Centeno

2015 Silver Lei Winners

Feature Film Competition Bum on a Bench: A Fight to the Death at Storybook Park directed by Eli HalbreichIndigo directed by John Hawthorne SmithMercury Is Mine directed by Jason Paul Laxamana I’m Star directed by Damien Dematra

2015 Aloha Accolade Winners

Documentary Film CompetitionAlegria - A Humanitarian Expedition directed by Christoph von ToggenburgKyrie directed by Holger KlussmannThe Blue Sound of New York directed by Emanuele MichettiThe Urban World directed by Warren BassPlundering Tibet directed by Michael BuckleyIcarus - Casting from the Clouds directed by david ondaatje